Kerry: 'enough' tough talk with North Korea

The US Secretary of State John Kerry arrived in Beijing on Saturday aiming to turn the Chinese government's obvious frustration with North Korea's nuclear program into decisive action.

Mr Kerry's debut trip to east Asia as secretary has been shadowed by ominous threats from North Korea of nuclear attacks against the US mainland and Washington's allies in the region.

The Chinese have been unusually vocal in their condemnation of their old communist ally, with many prominent scholars saying it is time to cut the ties forged by Mao Zedong in the Cold War era.

Talking peace: US Secretary of State John Kerry. Photo: Reuters

Arriving in Seoul on Friday afternoon, Mr Kerry met South Korea's new President Park Geun-hye and Foreign Minister Yun Byung-se.

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Despite some tough talk directed at North Korea, the tone was more conciliatory than in recent weeks, with Mr Kerry and the South Koreans suggesting there was an opening for the government in North Korea to return to negotiations over its nuclear program.

''The real goal should not be reinforcing the fact that we will defend our allies, which we will, but it should be emphasising for everybody the possibilities of peace, the possibilities of reunification, the possibilities of a very different future for the people of the Republic of Korea and ultimately North Korea,'' Mr Kerry said.

Urging the US to call for calm: South Korean protesters rally outside the US Embassy in Seoul. Photo: AP

As he spoke, US and South Korean intelligence were reporting that North Korea had moved as many as five missiles into launch position on its east coast.

The most worrisome of them is a new medium-range missile known as the Musudan, which could potentially reach Guam and US bases in Japan.

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has been hosting festivities this weekend for the April 15 birthday of his grandfather, Kim Il-sung, the nation's founder. Analysts believe the missile tests could be timed for the birthday, which is a public holiday in North Korea.

''It is a huge mistake for him to choose to do that [a missile test] because it would further isolate his country and further isolate his people, who are frankly desperate for food, not missiles,'' Mr Kerry said in Seoul.

South Korea's Ms Park was quoted by her aides on Friday as saying she was willing to ''listen to what North Korea thinks''.

Previous North Korea crises have exposed rifts between the US and South Korea, particularly during the George W. Bush administration, but this time the alliance is holding strong, foreign policy analysts say.

The Chinese have also moved measurably closer to the US, South Korea and Japan in condemning North Korea's belligerence. A poll in Saturday's Global Times, a Communist Party newspaper, said 33.9 per cent of Chinese living near the Korean border were afraid of war breaking out.

But US policymakers want China to be more proactive in using its considerable economic leverage against North Korea. North Korea receives most of its fuel oil and consumer goods from China, and trading companies linked to the Pyongyang leadership keep funds in Chinese banks.